And it's a new Year - 2024

And so its the start of an new year and time to change things up a little. So I've decided to try my hand at some 3D ideas. I love skulls and skeletons so for Gallery Show at the end of 2023, I made this iridescent mirrored comedy/tragedy masked piece.  Then I also added Mr. Bone Jangles, just for fun. 

 

From there I decided to try nativity scenes for Christmas which were big hits at my 

Holiday shows.

 

 

 And as I get ready for my show season I am working on some more new projects that I hope will spark some interest and take my work to the next level.

THE BIG MOVE

 At this point in my life I never thought I would be making any more huge life changes, but then we bought a new house. Packing and moving 25 years of a 4 story Victorian century home was a 3 month process.

And settling into a 1 story (with basement and garage) contemporary ranch was another 3 month process. Big changes, but all for the better. 

Of course, the hardest part for me was moving my whole Stained Glass studio. It was literally a one day at a time job.  Packing and storing the glass, the equipment, all the odds and ends, then breaking down the storage units, benches, and work tables. Transporting to the new house then reassembling everything and figuring out new layouts and what goes where. Huge thanks to my many artist friends who helped with the on the ground work and understood my vision. After 2 months, I was finally ready to fire up the ole soldering iron.

So here are a few of the newest offerings from what I am calling my travel and leisure line. 

The Lil Red Truck, 

                         Camper Time

 

Sail Away, Sail Away.

 

     And who can resist these cute    little bugs? 

 

So here we are, New house, new studio, new ideas. Can't wait to see what this year will bring.

 

 

 

The Art of Inspiration

 Often at shows, people will say to me, "I wish I was this creative".  I tell them that everyone can be creative, you just have to be open to inspiration. I have a habit of looking at everything thru Stained Glass glass's, always looking at something and wondering how I can incorporate into my stained glass. But to be honest, the boost to my creativity or inspiration has always been my customers, friends and family.

  

For example, my daughter, who is in the Coast Guard wanted a gift for a friend who is also in the Coast Guard. So I made this.

 

                                               

 

 

 

 And now I make this. 

My niece asked me for something like this.

 

 

 

 

So now I make this.

My Bank teller wanted a gift for her daughter who is into yoga. She wanted something with chakras (energy points in your body) and elephants. So I made her this.

 

 

 I have added this design to my inventory

 

 

A friend asked me to make something  for her butcher who has been really kind to her, so I made this.  However, I don't plan on making more of these. But you get the idea. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The bottom line is, look around, listen and keep your mind open. Inspiration can come from anywhere.

EEEK, it's a Spider

So anyone who knows me well, knows that I hate spiders. And when I say hate, I mean close my eyes if they show up in a movie or TV show, locked myself in the bathroom for 3 hours until my husband came home, stood on top of my desk at work until my boss shooed the the little arachnid out of the office, HATE. (PSA - I will not kill them as they are good for the environment and are considered good luck in many cultures.) So how come Spiders have become such a main stay of my current work?

 Because the general public seem to find these little 8 legged crawlies cute. 

It all started when I was invited to be part of an exhibit at a local Nature Center. The theme was "What's the Buzz", with an emphasis on Spiders.

So I decided to face my fear and try to have fun with the subject. I started by creating an army of what I called Marching Spiders

 Then I decided to be a little more precise and educational and looked up all kinds of spiders. I wanted to find out about the spiders that weave those beautiful webs.  I decided on an Orange Orb Weaver spider and web and even added an informational card, just for good measure.

 And so here we are.  

Three weeks ago I was invited to be part of a month long Skeleton and Skull Exhibit and as I was designing my feature piece, a large hanging Skull, I couldn't help it, I just had to add the spider details.

 

This doesn't mean that I  will go out and pet a tarantula or anything like that, and I will still probably lock myself in the bathroom if one decides to march thru the house, but I can at least appreciate their importance in nature and the beauty, in their own small way,  they bring to the world.

My Covid Year

 For all of us, 2020 was a challenging year to say the least.We all had to learn to deal with a reality that was so different from anything we had ever dealt with before. One of the many things that I, as an artist had to come to terms with was the cancellation of every Art Show, Art Venue and  outlet that I was used to participating in. 

Like many of my Artist friends, at the beginning of 2020, I found it hard to be creative in.  It was as if all the artistic juice had been wrung out of me. 

But then I got a call from a person who had bought from me at a local show, asking if I could make a custom piece as a gift. That helped get me back into the studio.

Then, I received an email from my Glass supplier that they were going to have a contest. Everyone would get the same piece of glass (a 12 inch chisel shaped bevel) and you could make what ever you wanted with it. Well that seemed to spark something in me and I ended up recreating a USCG boat that my daughter had commanded. 

 

And suddenly I was creating for special exhibits, like "Whats the Buzz", about bugs and spiders in particular, for a local Nature Center.

  

 And I had customers start calling for special pieces and personal gifts like the cat plate hanging for a Sister-in-law, or the cake plate hanging for a                   Grandmother.

   

 

The holidays brought the chance to create some fun pieces for a couple of local Art and Gift shops in the area. which helped while away the cold winter afternoons.

So,by being more open to new and different opportunities,thinking outside the box and staying active and creative, I made it through 2020, feeling productive and creative and excited to see what 2021 will bring. 

 

 

And so to end this Blog, I would like to share my latest piece, that I made for my Orthopedic Surgeon who fixed my left shoulder in January. After years of horrible pain in my joint, he has given me a relief that I have not had in years. So I made him a replica of the Tree from the American Board of Orthopedic Surgery. He just didn't seem like a Butterfly or Dragonfly sun catcher kinda guy to me.

 

All creatures great & small

 It seems like this is going to be year of "things found in Nature" and all things natural. And of course I don't want to be left behind.  So new for 2020 are my 
BIRDS AND THE BEES' (and assorted other critters)

             
              I started with this cute little Chickadee 
                    (or Finch or Sparrow). 

 
                                              
Then tried my hand at a
Honey Bee

                      

                     Next I created a 3 D Butterfly

And now I am working on the crawlers. A Spider, a Praying Mantis and a   Grasshopper. 


Be sure to stay tuned to this Blog to see what else makes it into the 2020 season.




 

All that Bling

As I have mentioned in previous posts, I like to de-construct vintage jewelry to use in my sun catchers. I like the added effect it can add to a piece and I'm a big proponent of Up Cycling. So over the last couple of years, I have amassed a fair amount of jewelry pieces and parts,  which led me to the idea of trying to make a sun catcher completely out of  jewelry components combined with bevels.

                     

 Well, it was a big hit at my next show, everyone kept looking at it and Oohing and Aahing over it. Finally, a lady walked into the booth, said "I have to have that." and it was off to it's forever home.

 I figured I was on to something good, so of course, I had to make another one. Again, nothing but jewelry pieces and bevels. 

   And again, after a lot of attention, it was another "I just have to have that." and off it went with another happy customer. 

Since then, I have made two more, and they both have sold as soon as I have put them on display. 

They are fun but time consuming to make, and I have decided to only do one at a time. When one sells, I will then make another one.  

These add a lot of interest to my show booth although they are not the main focus of my art, but they add a lot of fun and a lot of BLING. And we can all use a little BLING in our lives.